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The subtle "Christianizing" of psychic/occult phenomena
By Chris Lawson
January 2012
Introductory Notes
The article below was originally published in January 2012, on the first Spiritual Research Network (SRN) website (Spiritual-Research-Network.com). The article was originally titled, A Closer Look at Have Heart: bridging the gulf between heaven and earth - Exposing The Deception of "Christian" Clairaudience and Clairsentience. Further revisions and link updates were made on 8/26/2013, 8/10/2020, and the current title and subtitle were been updated on 8/06/2025.
The article expresses multiple concerns about Steve and Sarah Berger's Have Heart: bridging the gulf between heaven and earth, published by the Grace Chapel, Inc. on June 1, 2010. The cover endorsement (book image above) is by James Robison and the inside cover endorsements are by James Robison, Dr. Chuck Missler, William Paul Young, Senator Bill Frist, M.D., and Pastor Greg Laurie.
Similar Resources About the Have Heart Authors, Book, and Endorsements
Here are other articles in this series that can be accessed directly from the SRN website.
- A Closer Look at Have Heart - bridging the gulf between heaven and earth (Steve and Sarah Berger, 2010)—Exposing the Deception of 'Christian' Clairaudience and Clairsentience (Current page)
- Calvary Chapel Pastors Perspective Refutes Praying to the Dead—Yet Calvary Chapel Affiliate Pastor Steve Berger Encourages Praying (talking) to the Dead (Have Heart book and Have Heart website FAQ page)
- Have Heart: bridging the gulf between heaven and earth—Endorsements and Contacting the Endorsers
- Chuck Missler's Public Statement on Facebook Regarding His Personal Endorsement of Have Heart
- More Concerns About the Lack of Discernment Pertaining to Grace Chapel Leipers Fork and Steve Berger's Ministry
You can also view former psychic medium Doreen Virtue's June 8, 2023 Interview with Chris Lawson. This video is titled Warnings about Pastor Steve Berger's Mediumship Practices. See also the newer booklet titled, PROMISE KEEPERS, STEVE BERGER, And the Dangerous Implications of Ignoring Necromancy in the Church.
Author Warren B. Smith's booklet Dead Men Talking: Necromancy In Today's Church is also available. This booklet is an excellent overview and warns about the growing dangerous trend in off-base churches and amongst individuals who wrongly assume they can communicate with their deceased loves ones "the other side". Mr. Smith has also written a book titled, The Titanic and Today's Church: A Tale of Two Shipwrecks. This well-researched in-depth book explains numerous dangerous trends and false teachings that are adversely affecting millions of churchgoers.
Steve Berger's Grace Chapel Church on the Calvary Chapel Church Locator
One should also take note of this, that Pastor Steve Berger of Grace Chapel Leipers Fork, (Franklin, Tennessee), even after ten years from the original publishing date of his book Have Heart (June 1, 2010), is still listed as an active Calvary Chapel affiliate church/pastor on the Calvary Chapel Church finder/church locator website.
In 2015, Brian Brodersen, Don Stewart and Josh Turansky together refuted praying to/talking to the dead (necromancy) on Calvary Chapel's flagship radio program, Pastor's Perspective (streamed live on Sep. 29, 2015, K-Wave Radio).
One simply has to wonder why the Calvary Chapel Association has overlooked such a dangerous thing as one of their fellowship churches/pastors publishing and promoting material that encourages communicating with those "on the other side."
This Screenshot image, taken on August 10, 2020, is from the official Calvary Chapel Association website Church Locator page at calvarycca.org/churches/. Grace Chapel and Pastor Steve Berger are listed as the first church contact in the top left corner of image. The Calvary Chapel Association eventually removed Grace Chapel from its own website Church locator. However, this was after many years of the Calvary Chapel Association not addressing Pastor Steve Berger and his wife's teachings.
A Closer Look at Have Heart: bridging the gulf between heaven and earth - Exposing The Deception of "Christian" Clairaudience and Clairsentience
“Clairsentience, also known as "clear feeling," is a psychic ability that allows a person to perceive information through feelings and emotions. It's often described as the ability to sense the emotions or energy of others, places, or situations. Individuals with this ability may feel what others are feeling, sense the energy of a room, or have strong gut instincts.” (Google, AI Overview)
“Clairaudience is the ability to hear sounds beyond the normal range of hearing, often described as hearing voices or sounds that are not physically present. It's considered a form of extrasensory perception, or "sixth sense," and is one of the four "clairs" of intuition, alongside clairvoyance, clairsentience, and claircognizance. Clairaudience can manifest as hearing things internally, like a voice in your head, or externally, like hearing a voice from a non-physical source.” (Google, AI Overview)
Can Christians communicate with deceased love ones?
Can Christians, like those who are involved in occult practices, hear communications from, and sense the "presence" of deceased loved ones? Or are these communications and feelings of "presence" received through occult (hidden) practices such as clairaudience (hearing/listening) and clairsentience (feeling/touching)?
The material in this article seeks to address experiences (from any and all) and Christian nomenclature (words) that have been put forth in order to endorse the alleged initiating contact of the spirits of deceased loved ones with those who are living on our side of deaths door. Just who really is visiting Christians and what are the means by which these visitations are occurring?
The following material is by no means meant to poke fun at or belittle the Steve Berger family and the loss of their dearly beloved son Josiah. Spiritual Research Network (SRN) has posted this article out of our own concern about much of the material found in Have Heart: bridging the gulf between heaven and earth, material that upon in-depth study, very closely parallels the world of Spiritistic affluence and influence, primarily regarding clairaudience and clairsentience—hearing and sensing the presence of spirit beings and allegedly engaging in passive and active communication with them.
As a research ministry, SRN shares a mutual concern with other ministries that also have examined the unscriptural practices found in Have Heart. While it is obvious that the author (and endorsers) of the book do not openly advocate Spiritism, necromancy, etc., great confusion stems from the published double-talk one can find in Have Heart, hence our concern and that of numerous others.
God considerations communicating with the dead an abomination
It is to be noted that only once in all of Scripture is communication with the dead observed. This one-time instance in Scripture is a clear condemnation from God's prophet Samuel (1 Samuel 28:7-20) against living human beings attempting to communicate with the dead. God condemns this practice outright! God brought judgment upon Saul and the witch (spirit medium, Spiritist) of Endor for attempting to traffick (communicate) with the deceased, with the dead. In this one instance God allowed the real Samuel to be "brought up" from the dead in order to condemn forever this evil practice of contacting and/ or dialoguing with the dead, discarnate (deceased) human beings.
According to God's Word, attempting to contact the dead was banned in Israel (Deuteronomy 18:11). All who seek to communicate with the dead become spiritually defiled (Leviticus 19:31). This includes attempting to pray to or contact departed loved ones and trying to listen to, hear, sense, smell and touch them, even if something appears and claims the loved one's identity. Demons seek to impersonate the dead in order to deceive well meaning, and grieving humans. Even if spirit beings, ghosts, poltergeists, etc. seek to initiate communication with humans, all forms of this practice have been condemned in one fell swoop by God Himself! It does not matter who these spirits claim to be, God says that humans are to have nothing to do with it!
"When you come into the land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not learn to follow the abominations of those nations. There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. 12 For all who do these things are an abomination to the LORD, and because of these abominations the LORD your God drives them out from before you. You shall be blameless before the LORD your God. For these nations which you will dispossess listened to soothsayers and diviners; but as for you, the LORD your God has not appointed such for you." (Deuteronomy 18:9-14)
"Give no regard to mediums and familiar spirits; do not seek after them, to be defiled by them: I am the LORD your God." (Leviticus 19:31)
It is not deceased people who are ultimately being contacted through the séance, the Ouija Board, or prayers offered to the dead. It is demonic spirits that masquerade as deceased family members, personalities, the alleged "Higher-Self," the "Ascended Masters," the "Collective Conscious," "Evolutionary Consciousness," etc. (2 Corinthians 11:14-15).The Bible is clear that Satan himself and other fallen angels (demons) deceptively transform themselves into angels of light, in order to mislead humanity.
"And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works." (2 Corinthians 11:14-15)
Furthermore, there are at least 150 biblical passages that address to some degree or another involvement with the eight different categories of occult practices—and the condemnation thereof. This fact alone should concern any Christian who reads Have Heart: bridging the gulf between heaven and earth and sees the closeness to familial spirit contact (Spiritism, spiritualism, mediumship) that these authors are describing.
Is Josiah really returning to comfort people?
According to Have Heart: bridging the gulf between heaven and earth, people have personally experienced "Josiah" coming to them in various ways, dreams, visitations, touches on the cheek, etc. Like the Bible, the authors of Have Heart condemn necromancy (Have Heart, p. 94-96), but then they also outright endorse listening to and sensing spirit beings around us, claiming that they still communicate with their deceased son.
The Berger's communicate closeness to the deceased (but yet alive), this way (bold text added for emphasis):
"Jimmy's dream [Jimmy's dream?] is a great example of how we are surrounded and how our loved ones are connected to us. They know, they care about what we're going through, and there's a nearness that's not easy to explain but wondrous in reality...We are one body, connected here on earth, connected in Heaven, and connected between Heaven and earth. Our loved ones may show up in dreams or visits or other ways (who can limit God's imagination?), but the fact is that we're connected. Our loved ones are not "up there" and we are "down here." There is a thin veil, and we're connected to them, forever, in Christ." (Have Heart, p. 110).
"You don't father or mother a child for nineteen years and then hear God say, 'Oh, now you can't talk to him. You no longer have a relationship with him until you see him face to face in Heaven....' We still talk to Josiah, and it's going to be so great when we're together again." (Have Heart, p. 125).
Steve and Sarah Berger have created a mass of confusion for their readers and their readers are presented with teachings that can very easily lead undiscerning individuals into spirit contact, which God forbids. Whether one is a Christian or not is beside the point, God condemns all forms of communicating with the dead, whether humans initiate communication, or the spirit world.
Endorsements from Christian Leaders?
Previous to writing this article, numerous people expressed their own concerns to the ministry of Spiritual Research Network about Dr. Chuck Missler (K-House; Koinonia House) and Greg Laurie's (Harvest Christian Fellowship) endorsements within the first pages of Steve Berger's book. Growing numbers of people who have been influenced by the ministries of Chuck Missler and Greg Laurie are in dismay over the lack of discernment that has been displayed by their endorsements of this book.
For instance, glowing endorsements from Dr. Chuck Missler, Pastor Greg Laurie, William P. Young (Author of New York Times Best Seller, The Shack), James Robison (Founder and President, LIFE Outreach International), and Senator Bill Frist (M.D. and Former U.S. Senate Majority Leader) appear on the first two pages of Have Heart (Have Heart, p. ii-iii). The fact that heresy promoting William Paul Young is in this list is a huge cause for alarm, and Chuck Missler's name is right above Young's name.
William Paul Young believes in Universalism and outright rejects the full Penal substitutionary atonement of Christ on the cross as a substitute for sinners. Certainly this will be a cause of great concern for many who believe in Christ and seek to faithfully obey the Word of God. For those who are upset upon reading the foregoing, you may do the research too, and arrive at the same conclusions. The Bible is clear that we must all "test all things," regardless of the popularity of the pastors, teachers and book endorsers.
"Despise not prophesyings. Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all appearance of evil." (1 Thess. 5:20-22)
Subtleties of New Age/occult teachings deceiving churchgoers
One more important thing needs to be mentioned here. Former spirit mediums, witches, New Ager's, occultists, yoga gurus, etc., who are now Christian preachers and researchers/authors are seeing clearly the subtleties and craftiness of the New Spirituality (New Age) deception invading the church. Why do so many other Christian leaders refuse to see this, and/or refuse to listen to God's warnings through those who were once steeped in the darkness, and are now as committed Christians warning against these things? New Age spirituality teachings and occult practices are being couched in Christian nomenclature (names, designations).
Sadly, many fail to see this for what it really is and countless churchgoers are being deceived. Christian leaders are supposed to warn about such things, not see how close they can get to it in the name of intimacy with God and closeness to our deceased loves ones. The shepherds and the watchman are supposed to work together, yet in many cases the shepherds are rejecting the watchman (doorkeepers). As a result the undiscerning sheep are being led astray into great danger.
"Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper [watchman] opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out." (John 10:1-3)
Miscellaneous Quotes From Have Heart: bridging the gulf between heaven and earth
For the Christian who knows their Bible and understands God's prohibitions against every form of occult practice, as well as the dire consequences when individuals engage in them, these quotes from Steve and Sarah Berger's book ought to cause some serious concerns. The Berger's have stated clearly:
"Our minds need to be stretched to the other side." (Have Heart, p. xxii)
"And then one night, Josiah showed up in a dream" (Have Heart, p. 68).
"He [God] used a dream in my life to further unfold the greatness of Heaven, to reinforce the supernatural preservation of my son..." (Have Heart, p. 71).
"Only two weeks after Josiah went to Heaven, I (Sarah) made it a habit to talk to Josiah...I would then be in instant conversation with Jesus and Siah [Josiah]" (Have Heart, p. 82).
"It wasn’t like he just appeared there. It was a sense of him coming into the aisle, and he got down on one knee and bent into my ear. He said, “Way worth it, Mr. Jim.” Then, as quickly as he came, he left. It wasn’t that he disappeared; rather, it was a sense of him leaving the sanctuary....He had a sense of speed about him, not that he was hurried, but as if life on earth was much slower than in Heaven—it’s a different place, a different plane. I stood up and went over to my wife and told her, “Josiah was just here.” (Have Heart, p. 99-100.)
Steve and Sarah Berger Still Talk To Josiah, Even Though Josiah Is In Heaven?
I have made some of text in the citations below as bold text to emphasize Steve and Sarah Berger's perspective, with the exception of "SAMUEL AND SAUL," which is in bold text in the Have Heart book. Italicized text below is in the original book as well. The Berger's write:
"Now, let's say right up front we're not talking about channeling, seances, or mediums trying to contact the dead. That's not what we're advocating and not what we're saying. Deuteronomy 18:10 forbids seeking those types of encounters.
What we are saying is that the Bible makes it clear that our loved ones in Heaven are alive, active, and aware - and we need to have heart and understand their vitality and nearness. We need to understand that God has the power to temporarily lift the veil between Heaven and earth at any time according to His good pleasure.
SAMUEL AND SAUL
Let's look at 1 Samuel 28:15-19:
Now Samuel said to Saul, “Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?” And Saul answered, “I am deeply distressed; for the Philistines make war against me, and God has departed from me and does not answer me anymore, neither by prophets nor by dreams. Therefore I have called you, that you may reveal to me what I should do.” Then Samuel said: “So why do you ask me, seeing the LORD has departed from you and has become your enemy? And the LORD has done for Himself[a] as He spoke by me. For the LORD has torn the kingdom out of your hand and given it to your neighbor, David. Because you did not obey the voice of the LORD nor execute His fierce wrath upon Amalek, therefore the LORD has done this thing to you this day. Moreover the LORD will also deliver Israel with you into the hand of the Philistines. And tomorrow you and your sons will be with me. The LORD will also deliver the army of Israel into the hand of the Philistines."
Though Samuel had departed from the earth, he was still keenly aware of Saul's past and present disobedience. More than that, he knew about God's future judgment of Saul, his sons, and the national of Israel. Let's be clear, 1 Samuel 28:12 says the medium saw Samuel. This wasn't some kind of demonic spirit. It was Samuel coming from Heaven. Why did God allow this? We don't know, and that's not our purpose. What we do know is, Samuel showed up. It's just clear from Scripture that sometimes they know what's happening here on earth. (Have Heart, p. 94-96)
Steve Berger writes, "Why did God allow this? We don't know, and that's not our purpose."
Actually—we do know why the real Samuel appeared. God allowed Samuel to appear in order to pronounce a scathing one-time pronouncement of God's judgment upon Saul, first King of Israel, for his wicked and abominable attempt of trafficking in the realm of the devil—seeking to utilize the witch at Endor (one who has a familiar spirit; spirit medium) to contact and consult the dead. In this case, in the only séance recorded in Scripture, God declares judgment on Saul, through the real Samuel. Furthermore, God killed Saul for his disobedience as is clearly seen in 1 Chronicles 10:13-14.
"So Saul died for his transgression which he committed against the LORD, even against the word of the LORD, which he kept not, and also for asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit, to enquire of it; And enquired not of the LORD: therefore he slew him, and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse." (1 Chronicles 10:13-14)
Based on the Word of God, we do know why God allowed the real Samuel to be brought up from the dead, to condemn once and forever the practice of seeking to communicate with the deceased, this side of eternity. God instituted the death penalty for those seeking to communicate with the dead, and for good reason.
The Berger's also write about a "thin veil" and state that they "still talk to Josiah":
"Our loved ones may show up in dreams or visits or other ways (who can limit God's imagination?), but the fact is that we're connected....There is a thin veil, and we're connected to them, forever, in Christ." (Have Heart, p. 110)
"You don't father or mother a child for nineteen years and then hear God say, 'Oh, now you can't talk to him. You no longer have a relationship with him until you see him face to face in Heaven....'We still talk to Josiah, and it's going to be so great when we're together again." (Have Heart, p. 125)
Steve Berger Endorsed William Paul Young's Best-Selling Fiction Novel, The Shack?
On somewhat of a side note here, but of equal concern to the discerning Christian, is the fact that Steve Berger has given his glowing endorsement in the introductory pages Praise for The Shack section of William Paul Young's (Wm. Paul Young) best-selling fictional novel, The Shack.
"Wrapped in creative brilliance, THE SHACK is spiritually profound, theologically enlightening, and life -impacting. It has my highest recommendation. We are joyfully giving copies away by the case." —Steve Berger, pastor at Grace Chapel, Leipers Fork, TN (Wm. Paul Young, The Shack, (Newbury Park, CA: Windblown Media, 2007)
So too, William Paul Young (Wm. Paul Young) has given his own glowing endorsement in the Front Matters section of Steve and Sarah Berger's Have Heart: bridging the gulf between heaven and earth.
"Framed within the most intimate of losses, this book allows its readers to peek into life-and-death perspectives of those who follow Jesus." —WILLIAM PAUL YOUNG, Author of New York Times Best Seller, The Shack (Steve Berger, Have Heart: bridging the gulf between heaven and earth (Franklin, TN: Grace Chapel, Inc., 2010)
Even though the author of The Shack, William Paul Young, is a recognized false teacher and The Shack text has thirteen heresies in it—all wrapped in creative Christian jargon as a fiction book, Steve Berger of Grace Chapel Leipers Fork (Franklin, Tennessee) speaks highly of it, gives his "highest recommendation" of it, and boldly states, "We are joyfully giving copies away by the case."
Quotes Expressing Concern, Biblical Warnings, and Definitions of Clairaudience and Clairsentience
Larry DeBruyn, Have Heart: A Review and Commentary - Part 2.The “Canaanization” of the Church, Do the Dead Communicate with the Living?
"The Berger's dutifully remind their readers: 'Remember, anything we think God is saying or revealing [through personal experiences] must line up with the Word and the nature, character, and will of God.' (HH, 44) But the book contains material which does not agree with this assertion."
God's Warning Against All Eight Forms of Trafficking in the World of the Occult
"There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up [i.e. prays to, or consults a medium on behalf of] the dead." (Deuteronomy 18:10-11)
Warning Against Giving Heed to Deceiving Spirits and Doctrines of Demons
"Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons..." (1 Timothy 4:1)
Definition of Clairaudience (hearing/listening)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clairvoyance
"In the field of parapsychology, clairaudience [from late 17th century French clair (clear) and audience (hearing)] is a form of extra-sensory perception wherein a person acquires information by paranormal auditory means. It is often considered to be a form of clairvoyance.[25] Clairaudience is essentially the ability to hear in a paranormal manner, as opposed to paranormal seeing (clairvoyance) and feeling (clairsentience). Clairaudient people have psi-mediated hearing. Clairaudience may refer not to actual perception of sound, but may instead indicate impressions of the "inner mental ear" similar to the way many people think words without having auditory impressions. But it may also refer to actual perception of sounds such as voices, tones, or noises which are not apparent to other humans or to recording equipment. For instance, a clairaudient person might claim to hear the voices or thoughts of the spirits of persons who are deceased. In Buddhism, it is believed that those who have extensively practiced Buddhist meditation and have reached a higher level of consciousness can activate their "third ear" and hear the music of the spheres; i.e. the music of the celestial gandharvas. Clairaudience may be positively distinguished from the voices heard by the mentally ill when it reveals information unavailable to the clairaudient person by normal means (including cold reading or other magic tricks), and thus may be termed "psychic" or paranormal."
Definition of Clairaudience or "Clear Hearing"http://www.spiritual-research-network.com/divinationforbidden.html
Clairaudience or "Clear Hearing", is usually defined as the ability to hear the voices or thoughts of spirits. Some Mediums hear as though they are listening to a person talking to them on the outside of their head, as though the Spirit is next to or near to the medium, and other mediums hear the voices in their minds as a verbal thought.
Definition of Clairsentience or "Clear Feeling"https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Clairsentience
“Clairsentience Is the ability to clearly feel energy or clear feeling. Feeling such things as emotions, thoughts, pain and yes even ghosts are made of energy. The stronger the energy of someones fears or thoughts the easier someone with clairsentience can feel it. It is an inner knowing the individual with the gift has come acustom to using and understanding as part of whom they are. For example the feeling of something is coming or knowing how someone is feeling and why.”
God's Judgment on Saul for Enquiring of the Spirit Realm
So Saul died for his transgression which he committed against the LORD, even against the word of the LORD, which he kept not, and also for asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit, to enquire of it; And enquired not of the LORD: therefore he slew him, and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse. (1 Chronicles 10:13-14)
“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try [test] the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.”
